Curated OER
Getting Fired Up
Students explore first-person accounts of volcanic eruptions throughout time and use second-hand information about volcanoes. They use both types of accounts to write news articles covering the events of a historic volcanic eruption as...
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Decidedly Different
Fifth graders inquire as to why scientists use observable characteristics, how they sort the characteristics, and why they do so. They write journal entries to be used throughout this unit.
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Eyeing the Next Einstein
Students complete a KWL chart on Albert Einstein. After they read an article, they discover more about his iconic status and how future scientists view him. In groups, they create trading cards about Einstein and another scientist of...
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Levers: What Can Leverage Do For Me?
Students determine the identity of the three classes of levers while explaining how each works. They wait a video clip that shows uses for different types of levers and work as a class to write a KWL chart. Finally, they make a model fo...
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Carbon Cycle Game
In this carbon cycle lesson, middle schoolers review the carbon cycle and visit stations in the room where they experience every phase in the carbon cycle. Students journal about their journey through the cycle and brainstorm ways humans...
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Growing A Coral Skeleton
Learners research the growth of coral. In this coral polyps lesson, students simulate the growth of coral by using available materials to grow crystals. Learners record observations in a scientific journal.
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Zoo Animal Experts
As part of an exploration of zoo animals, kindergarteners conduct research on their favorite animal and compile their information. Learners write about their animal in a journal and create a trading card. The culminating activity is a...
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Weather Journal
Students explore types of weather. In this weather lesson, students create a weather journal that houses different types of weather. Students write the definition and a summary for each weather type.
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Properties of Air
Fourth graders participate in a demonstration lesson using bubbles in which they determine that air fills the bubbles. Next, they work in small groups as they they experiment with the properties of air at separate work stations. After...
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Common and Science Names
First graders investigate how dinosaurs are named. They listen to the book "The Littlest Dinosaurs," discuss Greek and Latin words and word parts, identify the word parts and meanings of Triceratops, and create a drawing of a dinosaur...
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Earth Science: In Depth Look at Earthquakes
Students engage in an interactive Internet lesson covering the reasons and results of earthquakes. After reading eyewitness accounts and viewing animations, they use seismograms to measure and locate the epicenters. In an ongoing study,...
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work in pairs for the activities of this lesson which include researching and identifying butterflies, writing, and a brief oral presentation.
Students explore the concepts of rdioactive decay and dating. They generate a radioactive decay table, use their data to plot a decay graph, develop the concept of half-life, and then use the graph to find the age of a mummified seal in...
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How Do You Know There is Air in a Bag?
Fourth graders explore air as a material substance. Through experimentation and discussion, they explore how air can be classified as a material substance. Students write three examples proving that air is a material substance in their...
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Does the Seed Matter?
Students compare the growth of watermelon from commercial seeds and those harvested from a watermelon. They complete science journals showing these comparisons based on the data they collect.
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Rock Sorting
First graders observe rocks, record their observations about the rocks and classify them according to their observations. As a class, 1st graders create a list of observable characteristics of rocks. They sort a group of rocks...
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Air
Students complete a KWL chart on what they know about air. Reading a poem, they compare published definitions of air with the ones they created. They write the definition of air on a bullentin board. They also write their observations in...
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Auburn Cord Dusenberg Field Trip
Fifth graders compare two different vehicles and determine why the cars are designed differently. They write four facts learned from the field trip in their science journals including a fact about how force affects the performance of the...
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Making Sense of Journey North Maps
Students use maps and answer core curriculum questions in order to increase comprehension and practice higher order thinking skills. This helps them develop writing skills through the practice of keeping Science Journals.
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Be Specific, Go West To The Pacific
Fifth and sixth graders follow Lewis and Clark from St. Louis to the Pacific and back again. They read online journal entries made by Lewis and Clark to gather information. The official Lewis and Clark website is used by learners to...
Center Science Education
Torrents, Droughts, and Twisters - Oh My!
What is causing the extreme weather happening around the planet? Middle and high schoolers read about climate change as a possible link to such phenomena. Then they form groups to discuss and research one of the types of weather events....
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Life Underground
First graders build a terrarium in order to observe animal and plant life dynamics. In this biology lesson plan, 1st graders compare how organisms survive in different environments. They write their observations and analysis in their...
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Wetlands and Saltmarshes
Students identify the different functions of a wetland system and why the system is important to the St. Mary's River ecosystem and the environment. They play a migration game and write a journal about the salt marsh periwinkle and how...
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Mystery Game
Students examine objects and determine if they are living or nonliving. In this scientific observation lesson, students collect living and nonliving items from outside, record a drawing of each in their journal, and write a short song...
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Volcanoes
Students view images and interactive activities on the Internet about volcanoes. In this plate tectonics lesson, students use the Internet to view PDF images and HTML Interactive activities while writing observations in their journals....